I'm an American who grew up riding in NYC.
I spent three years riding in and around Augsburg Germany (1970-1973) where I first encountered the concept that bicycles were legitimately part of traffic and followed traffic laws. That took a little adjustment to my thinking but proved to certainly be a vast improvement over riding almost anywhere in the USA.
Later I rode in and around Dongducheon and occasionally Uijeongbu, Korea (1975-1976) where
everything is a regular part of traffic and
nothing followed traffic laws.
Then back to Germany where I rode in Helmstedt and Berlin (1981-1982).
In between each of the above, I had moved to Valley Station KY, where I rode regularly both alone and with my family for recreation.
Decades later, I hardly ride now, due to a bad ankle and hip.
Overall I prefer riding in Europe over both Asia and the US.
(01-27-2023, 06:47 AM)DelilahIris Wrote: In other countries, such as the United States and many developing countries, cycling infrastructure is less developed and attitudes towards cycling may be less positive. In these areas, it may be more challenging for cyclists to navigate the roads and drivers may be less aware of and less respectful of cyclists.
However, in recent years, many cities around the world have begun to invest in new cycling infrastructure and promote cycling as a viable form of transportation, which can be seen as a positive shift in attitude and culture towards cycling.
I'm not a big fan of "cycling infrastructure," which I find tends to isolate cyclists and thus exacerbates the problem of motorists feeling that cyclists don't belong on public roads.
This is especially true in the USA where even the supposedly "cycling friendly" local governments feel a need to designate specific roadways where motorists are told to tolerate cyclists.